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(upbeat music) - Out here on the coastal prairie of Texas, we're tripping to a town where the tacos are as big as torsos, and the stories collect like pennies in a well.

Stories of historic dance halls and haunted hospitals.

And where every good trip finishes a top a mountain of beef.

Yorktown, a great place to rastplatz.

I gotta find out what that means.

(upbeat music) (upbeat music) About an hour and a half southeast of San Antonio, and two and a half west of Houston, you'll find the town of Yorktown.

(upbeat music) So if there's a New York, it stands to reason there's an Old York, which there is in England.

But if this sounds younger than both of those, then we are officially tripping Newest York Town.

But this one was founded in the 1840s, named after Texas revolutionary, John York.

Who by historic accounts, had a portly and commanding presence.

He was a man of suave and dignity on the frontier.

Kind of sounds familiar, you know what I mean?

Daniel, what do you think?

- No.

But you didn't even mention the Battle of Yorktown in 1781.

Alexander Hamilton.

The American Revolution.

Nothing?

- Dude, that Yorktown is in Virginia, Daniel.

- (laughs) I think you're wrong.

You're definitely wrong.

- What an idiot.

In terms of famous Yorktown's, this one isn't first on the list.

And since it's early yet, let's pop into grandma's for breakfast.

And here in Yorktown, that's Abuelita's, where for 15 years, owners Nelda and Sam Valdez have been feeding both hungry locals and oil field workers alike, as their abuelita away from home.

So you are the abuelita?

- Yeah.

- (laughs) Is it only you back here?

- Yes.

This is my little hole in the wall here.

- (laughs) You know you don't have to work this hard.

You could hire somebody.

- Yeah, but I have to do the cooking.

I don't wanna ruin it.

- You're there abuelita.

You gotta cook for 'em.

- I'm very blessed.

And I know that God knows my plan in life, and so this is it.

Feeding the family and the boys in the oil field, and my people here in New Yorktown, because there's a lot of people, they like my food.

- Oh.

- And they do get up early.

- Early?

Nay, the middle of the night.

As Abuelita's opens at 3:45 a.m.

Why?

That's worse than like donut shop hours.

- Well, the oid field's 24/7.

- So these tacos are kind of famous in the Eagle Ford Shale?

- Eagle Ford Shale.

- Yeah, yeah, yeah.

You got the hat on everything.

- Yeah.

- Customers are so thankful they gift her hats, which she hangs on the wall like a mom hanging her kids' artwork on the fridge.

She knows the fastest way to an oil worker's heart is through the taco.

And the bigger the better.

(Chet laughs) - I don't measure.

- I can tell you don't measure.

This is one Abuelita taco.

So when someone comes in and they're like, "I'm kind of hungry, I want two or three tacos."

You just know they've never been here before.

- Yeah, and I don't warn 'em.

- Yeah, okay.

(laughs) Her tagline is, best little secret in Yorktown.

But let's be honest, ain't nothing little in this kitchen.

Example, her pancakes.

This is homemade?

- Yeah, there's nothing frozen.

This is my purpose in life.

I was a nail tech before this.

I did pedicures and manicures.

- Amazing what happens when you find your purpose.

And Nelda is about to put my hands to work, as she's got about 30 dozen tamales that need rolling.

I've made tamales one time in my life, and I think my masa spreading skills were very poor.

- Oh, just smear it like peanut butter.

- Okay, sitting next to the pro.

- Like a- - This looks thick.

This is pork.

- This is pork.

Chili Pequin for the heat.

- Woo.

- You got, okay, like rolling.

Look, watch this.

- Okay, roll all the way.

- Yeah.

- Anybody who's made tamales knows it's a labor of love.

And Abuela does it for the customers.

And a lot of them are far from home.

- They are.

- And so having someone like you, that maybe is that maternal figure for them that they're missing.

- It is.

And I'm in here busy doing other things.

And before they leave, they always come and say, "Thank you, Abuela."

- Aw, that's nice.

- Yeah.

And that breaks my heart.

- Aw.

Well hey, you're able to bring in that little bit of comfort though.

That's something.

- Oh my gosh, you're caught up.

(Chet laughs) You did great.

- I think it's break time.

(both laugh) And just like any good abuela, she's not letting us leave hungry.

So I'm getting some migas, carne guisada, tamales, and a taco for good measure.

Oh, like taste the love, man.

Which tastes a lot like grease and a well-seasoned griddle.

Mm.

Oh yeah.

That's delicious.

You can eat the taco, you make your own taco.

Throw in the migas in there with the beans.

And then look at this homemade chili pequin dust.

How spicy do you think this is?

- I've heard it called chupacabra dust.

- Chupacabra dust?

- Yeah.

- Well, I might need that stick right behind you, Daniel.

The chupacabra repellent.

- Wait, what?

(Chet laughs) - I might regret that, I don't know.

That's spicy.

Ooh, this is awesome.

Everything in front of me is delicious.

This is how you desayuno in Yorktown for sure.

(Daniel snickers) A little bit Spanglish for you there.

- Yeah, just a little.

- Everybody needs an abuela, but only Yorktown has an Abuelita's.

Now, the city's population is about 1800 folks, not including the transient oil field workers of the Eagle Ford Shale.

But in truth, Yorktown's population has always been a bit transient, as folks stopped in to ratsplatz, a word I'm hoping they can help me with inside the Yorktown Historical Museum.

Sitting inside the old Eckhardt mercantile building dating back to the 1870s, with some very unusual window coverings.

Why does it look like there are blast doors on the windows?

- The windows were covered in steel because of the blood bath that was going on.

There were a lot of murders.

They felt like they needed security.

- Blood bath?

This is museum caretaker Beverly Bruins.

And post civil war, this part of Texas was a rough place to be.

Racism was rampant, shootouts were frequent, and the rule of law was minimal.

But the owners of this mercantile could outlast any outlaws, and even had their own indoor well.

It's amazing.

I mean, this was a storehouse.

They had all the supplies they needed.

- They did.

- They could camp out here for a while.

- And I figured maybe they offered coffee every once in a while.

- (laughs) Yeah.

Since shootouts are much less frequent these days, the cistern is now the donation box.

(upbeat music) Oh, I do have a penny.

- Okay.

- You feeling lucky or am I feeling lucky?

- I hope you're lucky.

- Oh, buckets.

- You did it.

- Buckets.

We can make a donation and a wish at the same time.

Ah, but I got distracted by the blast doors, and forgot to ask the most important question.

I saw it on the sign.

What's a rastplatz?

- Yorktown was originally planned by Charles Eckhardt.

He was freighter from Indianola, the hill country.

He wanted a place halfway between.

- Okay.

- Rest.

- Rastplatz, okay.

Like a rest place.

- It was.

- Indianola was a huge port city.

So having a place to rest on the long journey into Texas, super important.

And many European immigrants made it this far and decided to put down roots.

The Polish in Panna Maria, and the Lithuanians here in Yorktown.

It's crazy.

So y'all know nearby Panna Maria, first Polish settlement in America.

Yorktown, first Lithuanian settlement in America.

What?

Never heard this in my life.

- In America?

- Yeah.

- Is Alexander Hamilton Lithuanian?

- Why do we keep talking about Alexander Hamilton?

All right.

That was Yorktown, Virginia.

Okay?

It has nothing to do with this city.

(smooth music) Some of this stuff's really cool.

Old cameras, typewriters, like a printing press.

And then some of it's just kind of depressing, like the computer I had in college.

Why is that in a historic museum, Daniel?

- Because it's now part of history.

- What?

Don't say it.

- I mean, it's true.

- (wines) 'Cause we're old.

The museum boasts two floors of history and a very historic way to travel between them.

I'm taking the elevator.

Is there a safety on this so if it loses track I don't crash to the ground.

- No.

- This is the most adrenaline pumping elevator I've ever been in.

(Daniel laughs) - You're almost halfway there.

- Almost?

It sounded a lot more dangerous, I think, than it actually is.

Man, I'm hot.

(chuckles) A little sweaty.

It's a workout.

Whew.

I think Captain York would be proud of the town they named after him.

(upbeat music fades) DeWitt County is an interesting stretch of Texas.

Dotted by small towns with serious community pride.

One of those is nearby Nordheim, with a very rich, very German history.

And for over a hundred years, this community has been gathering at the Nordheim Shooting Club.

(patriotic music) Despite its name, this is not a place to shoot guns.

They don't even do that anymore.

It is a bonafide Texas dance hall.

A community hub, and the last of a dying breed.

Man, I just love the feel in this place.

The big wood ceiling, the polished floor.

This place has a soul.

You kind of feel it.

This is awesome.

So it's the old advertisers.

There's even a pitch, attend church on Sunday.

Just making sure.

You're here Saturday night?

You better wake up tomorrow and go to church.

The German Texans I know are serious about a few things, including faith and celebrating.

- One time the town only had three people that were not German.

(laughs) - So pretty German.

- It's pretty German.

- Community.

- This is 90-year-old resident Gilbert Parkman, his daughter Rhonda, the club's treasurer, and Joseph, one of the directors.

You've got some good memories in here.

I imagine all y'all do.

- Oh yes.

- I was married here.

- We were married here.

- Really?

- We were married here.

- So you've made a few turns around that dance floor?

- Yes I did.

My wife and I both did.

But they were cheek to cheek dancing in here.

Not the hippie type deal.

- Right.

- But that came later on too.

- Oh yeah, it did, yeah.

- The shooting club has seen the days of polka give way to Texas country.

Shooting sports turned into softball tournaments and cookouts.

At times there would be over 1500 folks gathered up in these walls.

What's your first memory here at Nordheim?

- I was a child in the back room over here.

That's where I slept when the band was playing.

- The baby room.

- There's a baby room?

The polka band is basically your sound machine.

- Yes.

- Don't forget the bar was on the other side.

- Yes.

- So you got a stage with a nursery on one side and a bar on the other.

That is the most German thing I've ever heard.

Do you think this place is as important to the current young generation?

- I don't know so much because they don't dance.

They don't have dances anymore.

- It's hard to keep dancing alive.

There's so much other stuff to do.

- Yeah.

Oh, sad to hear.

While it may not be as hopping on a typical Saturday night, every year for Mayfest, it's an all out party.

The big attraction nowadays, tractor pulls.

(tractor engine revs) So explain this tractor pull to me.

- Well, when they first started out it was antique tractors.

They started bringing in the hot rods.

They'd hook it onto a sled.

And if you made it 300 feet, you made a full pull.

If you didn't spin out, or bogged down- - Your engine explodes.

- Or your engine didn't burn out.

- That happens.

- I'm not gonna lie, that looks awesome.

These places are, they're more than just sticks and nails.

They're important.

- Yes.

- Yes they are.

- We wanna keep it going for our grandkids to come and enjoy, 'cause it means a lot.

- Well, thank y'all for sitting down with me.

Another cheers.

- You're welcome.

Another cheers.

- I really appreciate it.

- For us.

- For us.

- The echoes of this place will ring for generations to come.

Bump, bump, bump, bump, bump, bump.

I think in my future life I'm gonna be in a polka band.

It might be this life.

Just stop "The Daytripper," I'm gonna start a polka band.

(David laughs) (upbeat music) I tell you, kids these days, they're just not dancing anymore.

- I will say in my lifetime, I don't think I've ever learned to dance.

I've never had to.

- See.

- They're dancing, it's just not what we call dancing.

- Dancing.

Two stepping with the jiggled legs and the Soulja Boys.

- People still do the dougie, don't they?

- The Carlton.

(Daniel sings indistinctly) - No, we need more full dance halls.

And that means people are gonna have to make the choice to stop binging TV shows, get off their phones.

- Well, let's not turn people off the TV maybe.

- I'm okay with people turning off the TV, even our own show, if that means you get out there and you dance a little bit.

But then come back when you're done.

- Yeah.

- Don't leave yet.

♪ Teach me how to douggie, ♪ Teach me teach me how to douggie ♪ - That dance hall is special.

But there's one building in Yorktown with stories so intriguing, it draws visitors from across the country.

Pulled in by fascination and fear.

It's the stories of the Yorktown Memorial Hospital.

And if you didn't guess it just by looking at it, yep, it's haunted.

And this is owner and our spirit guide, Fred Garza Guzman.

- I hope you're feeling brave.

- Oh, you're going in there, Greg.

- I'm not going in there.

- We'll see you guys after the segment.

- Come on.

The hospital opened in 1951, run by an order of Catholic nuns named the Felician Sisters.

The nuns were the nurses of the hospital, right?

They were the caretakers.

- Not only nurses, but administrators as well.

They oversaw everything on these grounds.

They were also the cooks, the cleaning ladies, everything.

- Everything.

- This is where they would've lived.

This is where they would've resided for close to 40 years.

- One of Fred's main reasons for buying this place was to keep their memory and stories alive.

- Nobody gave them money to run this.

This was something that they had to fundraise for, deal with.

And a lot of times they even went without or had less just to try to make this hospital function.

- Wow.

The sisters were dedicated.

But after 35 years and a lack of funding, the hospital closed.

Every room has its share of tales, but no room is creepier than the chapel.

(chapel music) I just gotta know.

- What do you gotta know?

- I just gotta know.

I gotta know what's in there.

- Wait, I mean, Oh my gosh, it opens.

(Chet moans) - Oh my gosh.

- Despite being built as a place of healing, the hospital's reputation was marred by dark rumors of malpractice, and tragic events happening not only to the patients, but the nuns themselves.

I mean, we can only see what we can see.

The material world.

You're here, this is here.

But for anyone who believes in the spiritual world, there's a whole nother layer of all of this.

- Yeah.

- It's like it's a big unknown world.

Am I right?

- It is.

And so that's why I'm curious about it.

That's why I wanna learn about it.

- Yeah.

Names, sounds, smells, scratches, heebie-jeebies, you name it, it's happened here.

What's the scariest thing that's happened to you in here?

- So I was doing a tour.

I turned that corner right by the kitchen.

I swear, sitting in the wheelchair I see a heavy set Hispanic guy.

And I kind of freak out and I go back.

- Yeah, whoa.

- And as I go back, he's not there.

And so I'm like... - Oh, just disappeared?

Like there, not there?

- Even didn't exist.

- Why do you keep coming back here?

Because a lot of people would have an experience like that and say, "I'm out forever."

- These kinds of stories, they get kids interested in history, they get adults interested in history.

And I love to share that stuff.

So I'm just a big nerd that wants to share.

- Okay, I like that.

I can agree with you on that front.

Well, if you're up for it, we're gonna go find dinner.

- Perfect.

- And we're gonna come back and see this place in darker times.

- Let's do it.

- Okay.

Just as soon as the sun sets.

All right.

- Alright, let's get going.

- Let's go.

Where's Daniel?

- Where I seen him?

What the?

- What's my name, man?

- Alexander Hamilton was not in Yorktown, Texas.

- There was a song about Yorktown.

- How about that.

- But could we claim?

- "Battle of Yorktown," 1781.

- I know the battle.

- I know my history, Chet.

- Yes, there was a battle thousands of miles away from here, in Virginia.

- I don't know what to tell you.

- I did like the wig on you though.

I'll play "Battle of Yorktown" for you.

- You can have your shot.

- Right, we'll do it.

- Alright, thanks guys.

I appreciate it.

♪ I am not throwing away my shot ♪ ♪ I am not throwing away my shot ♪ (all laugh) Now for a dinner that would make our forefathers proud, at 5D Steakhouse.

This massive two story mecca of meat seems way outta place.

And more than a steakhouse, it's also a bar, concert venue, and meat market.

Selling its tasty dried sausage.

Here to tell us more is manager Emily Jennings.

I saw this being made back there.

- Yes, sir.

- This sausage is kind of famous.

- It is.

So it's a fifth generation recipe, made here weekly.

- It's delicious.

- It's great, right.

- And the lady who makes it is precious.

She's back there doing her thing.

- Yes, she's a pro.

- To thicken the plot even more, 5D has five locations stretching from the coast to the hill country, and more in the works.

But this location is where the 5D dream started.

- So the founders of this company, Pete and Patricia Dlugosch, they're sitting around the dinner table on a Sunday, and Mr.

Dlugosch pulls out a napkin, draws a two story building on it.

And he says, "I am gonna build a two story bar and restaurant one day in Yorktown.

And it is gonna host some of the best entertainment this small town has ever seen."

Isn't that a crazy idea?

- Right.

But he pulled it off, right.

You're only crazy until you do it.

- Until you make it happen.

And then they're like, wow, that's not so crazy.

It's actually achievable.

- The stage has hosted everyone from Clay Walker to Koe Wetzel.

But even when the stage is quiet, the stakes are singing in the kitchen.

Y'all got this mentality, like leave the big city out of it.

- Yeah.

- We're just gonna be in.

- We're for the small town people.

Yes, sir.

- The small town people know how to eat.

- They do.

- The kitchen is hopping, but you know I gotta go with a steak.

So how about a hand cut ribeye, kissed by the flames, topped with grilled asparagus and crab hollandaise.

I give you the steak oscar.

(upbeat music) It's time to eat, my friends.

In 5D, you get the taste, the smell, the feel, the sight, and the taste.

(laughs) What's the other sense?

Oh, the sounds.

- And the spirit world.

- Yeah, that's right.

Make sure you pay attention to the sounds.

Mm, there's about to be some sounds of me gnawing and chewing a steak.

Some people might get mad, like why you put vegetables on my steak?

But I'm kind of excited about it.

Oh, now that's a good steak.

My gosh.

I mean, a lot of people put a finishing butter on a steak.

Why not make your finishing butter crab hollandaise?

(Daniel laughs) That's pretty fantastic.

- Alright, are we doing this?

- I'm kind of like eating slower just to delay.

- I have a feeling you were, - I'm gonna be honest, I'm a little nervous about going back over there.

I'm just gonna eat really slow.

Until the sun comes up and we don't have to go.

Oh, death comes to us all I suppose.

And you can't delay the inevitable.

(contemplative music) - All right, so it's a little different and dark.

- I would say so, Fred.

I would say so.

Like any investigator, Fred has tools.

Including a strange device called Spirit Chat, which scans a random database of thousands of words and speaks when it gets a message from the other side.

This is not like a Ouija board.

We're not opening a portal.

- No, we're not opening a portal.

We're going to use simple techniques by being kind and asking, hey, would you do me a favor and touch this?

We are just kind of utilizing energy and space and seeing what happens.

- Okay.

♪ Going to the chapel ♪ And we're gonna get scary Are y'all sweating?

- I wanna introduce myself.

My name is Fred and this is?

- I'm Chet.

- So we can go ahead and see that energy.

We see that.

Thank you.

Thank you for getting close to that.

- So Fred, this shouldn't- (device beeps) - Format.

- Format.

Hopefully it's not formatting the cameras.

We would lose all the footage.

That would be a bad thing, yeah.

(device beeps) - You needed help.

- Do we need the help?

- That's a good question.

Do you think we need help?

(device beeps) - Double.

I'm not sure what that means.

- Two of us.

- There's two of us, so.

Oh, and that went off and we didn't touch it.

- We definitely didn't touch that.

- Thank you for doing that.

- What is happening?

Words, lights.

It's coming so fast it's almost hard to process.

- My screen keeps going white.

Very interesting.

- Which screen?

- Should we just go up the number seven?

I don't know if that means anything to any of us.

- One, two, three, four, five, six, seven.

- Oh, alright.

- Seven of us.

- There are seven of us in the room.

- This is wild.

- Yeah, it's interesting.

- This is wild.

I think it's good to have a healthy skepticism about this stuff.

And room by room, sometimes things make sense.

Other times, random.

This is a weird mix of words.

- Yeah, and sometimes- - Snooker table, if I could.

Casey?

- The name?

- Oh, sorry, Kathy.

- Oh, Kathy.

Oh.

- She just freaked out.

We make jokes to break the tension.

But truthfully, this is spooky.

Does this go up to a staircase up here?

- This goes... No, the staircase is on the other side, but let's see if there's a stool.

(ominous music) (device beeps) - Woman.

- No, I don't see a stool.

- That's a little.

(device beeps) - Went missing.

- Oh, wow.

- This sounds like a very sad story.

(device beeps) - Sally.

Is your name Sally?

- You're spiking quite a bit on this one too.

- Completely random database of words, and all those came together in order.

- Yeah.

(device beeps) - Lights off.

- Nah.

- Casey, turn your light off.

(ominous music) (light switch click) (device beeps) - Finish.

- I ain't gonna argue with that.

If this is it, I'll see all y'all out on the road.

Vaya condios, amigos.

Are you happy now?

(device beeps) - (laughs) We gotta get outta here.

- Interesting.

(light switch click) (device beeps) (all laugh) - Casey.

- That's cool.

- Casey, it just said bright as if you put the light.

Turn the light off.

(light switch click) - You turned your light on too, Fred?

- I did.

(device beeps) - Okay.

- Oh wow.

- Okay.

Okay, we're going.

We're leaving right now.

(gritty stomp music) To be fair, we're all just passing through.

And whether you came to Yorktown to rastplatz or to put down toots, it's a town where folks take care of each other.

Feeding both the stomach and the soul.

And again, it has nothing to do with Alexander Hamilton.

And while I am sad the day trip's over, I am thrilled to be out of that hospital.

- That was pretty cool, to be honest.

- Part of me wants to go back in there and keep going.

But we don't need to.

I was told to leave, so we are leaving.

- There you go.

Howdy, y'all.

Follow along with my adventures at chettripper on Instagram and at thedaytrippertv on Facebook and YouTube, or head to the daytripper.com for travel guides, past episodes, and info on our mobile app and team "Daytripper."

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Visit Georgetown, where big ideas meet small town charm.

Georgetown, the most beautiful town square in Texas.

Texas Farm Bureau Insurance, protection and peace of mind for Texans since 1952.

Don Hewlett Chevrolet Buick in Georgetown making Texas Road trips possible for over 50 years.

Don Hewlett Chevrolet Buick, Texas True.

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